I spend a lot of time listening to headsets. I wear them while working, walking, working out and of course, gaming. Upon opening the box, I was very excited to see that this headset includes a carrying case. For me, any large headset requires a carrying case for the protection of my investment as well as to carry any of the extras needed for a headset of this type. As I  investigated this headset, I found it had the following features: a noise cancelling switch, an on-cord volume control, an area on the headset for a battery, (which is for the noise cancelling) and an airplane headset jack.

To test it out, I used the headset in two different gadgets: a laptop computer, and a first generation iPod nano.

On my laptop, I tested the headset while playing video games and while watching a show with Windows Media Player. I decided a marathon run of a television series would be able to test comfort level and the sound quality. As I settled in to watch the episodes, I thought the extra long cord was very convient for sitting a fair distance from the screen yet, I was able to control the volume with the built-in volume control on the cord. However, after about two hours of wearing the headset, they did make my ears a little tender. I also found my head, sitting under the band was also becoming a little sore.  Of course, this was from wearing the headset for a straight two hours. But, my ears were perfectly comfortable leading up to that two hour mark.  For gaming, I tested out the headset while playing a little classic Warcraft III. The headset picked up even the smallest sounds, clear as a bell. I was able to tell when I was being directed to a problem area, or when one of my abominations was finished. As far as headsets go, I also liked that it actually covered my whole ear, which can be a huge problem with cheaper end gaming headsets.

For testing with the iPod, I figured that moving around would be key to test out the audio and comfort. So, I wore the headset while doing housework. As lame as this might sound, but I figured since I would be running up and down stairs to go to the laundry, move around the room while vacuuming and scrubbing, and of course washing dishes, and what could be a better test for movement?  As I went about my chores, I found that the noise cancelling feature was strong enough to make the airplane roar of my washer turn into a low hum. It also made the iPod’s sound very clear and crisp.  The downside here though, was the long cord. In terms of using it on a portable audio device like my iPod, the cord actually became a burden. It was too long and I had to double it over a number of times in order to fit it into my pocket. Also, I found that the headset was a little too cumbersome  for a workout. In retrospect, this type of headset is not designed for a workout though, so really it isn’t a flaw.

For my testing purposes, the company also sent along a splitter so that I could test the sound of the NC300W against a headset of my choice. I compared the Able Planet headset to a set of ear-buds and regular computer headset. When compared to a computer headset there was no contest, the NC300W won hands down. The amount of noise they are able to cancel, coupled with the sound quality was shockingly different between the two pairs. I was very impressed.  The difference was also remarkable when comparing the headset to a pair of earbuds.

Overall, this headset delievers exceptional quality, and comfort. Though I found that for a extensive amount of time the headset did provide a little too much pressure on my glasses and ears. For those of you that do not have glasses, you will most likely find this product exceptional to use. In my personal opinion, this headset would be wonderful for a person that is playing PC games, watching movies and listening to music on a computer, especially if you want something that also offers a noise cancelling system.